Castizo

Castizo (fem. Castiza) is a racial category used in Spanish America to refer to people who are three-quarters Spanish and one-quarter Amerindian. The category of castizo was widely recognized by the 18th century in colonial Mexico and was a standard category portrayed in eighteenth-century casta paintings.

A castizo is a person of predominantly European (usually Spanish) ancestry with a smaller proportion of Indigenous ancestry—typically three-quarters Spanish and one-quarter Amerindian. This term is widely used in colonial Spanish America to describe individuals who, despite some Indigenous ancestry, often appeared and were socially treated as white.

Physical traits of castizos often reflect strong Mediterranean features, such as:

• Olive to light skin tones, sometimes with warm or golden undertones.
• Straight or wavy dark brown hair, occasionally with lighter streaks.
• Facial structure that is typically European: straight or aquiline nose, angular jawline, medium to high cheekbones.
• Eyes are usually brown or hazel, but green and lighter tones can appear depending on family background.
• Overall appearance is often indistinguishable from Southern Europeans, especially Spaniards from regions like Andalusia, Extremadura, or the Canary Islands.

Castizos and Euro-mestizos are most commonly found in Latin American regions with a strong Spanish colonial heritage and relatively low Indigenous admixture. These regions include:

• Northern Mexico (e.g., Chihuahua, Sonora, Nuevo León): Populations here often show high European ancestry and Mediterranean traits due to historical settlement patterns.
• Central Mexico (e.g., Jalisco, Guanajuato, Puebla): Although more mixed, many individuals still retain pronounced Mediterranean features.
• Chile: Especially in the central and southern regions, many Chileans have predominantly Spanish ancestry with minor Indigenous admixture.
• Argentina: Particularly in Buenos Aires and the central provinces, the population is largely of European descent, often Mediterranean (Spanish and Italian).
• Southern Brazil (e.g., Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina): Although Portuguese-speaking, these areas have large populations of European descent, including Portuguese, Italian, and German, with some Indigenous admixture.
• Canary Island-descended communities in Latin America: Found in Venezuela, Cuba, and parts of Mexico, these populations often retain Mediterranean features.